


Bullying & Payback

by Hellokaelyn



Series: Charlotte Torres [21]
Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-01
Updated: 2019-02-01
Packaged: 2019-10-20 17:20:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17626409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hellokaelyn/pseuds/Hellokaelyn
Summary: "What I'm trying to say is..being hurt by words doesn't make you weak, the fact that you face it every day and continue on..that's what makes you strong."





	Bullying & Payback

**Author's Note:**

> For the Anon on Tumblr who requested it.

Charlotte grit her teeth walking along her school hallway. She could feel the stairs and hear the giggling but refused to look in their direction.

She just needed to finish this year then she would be in high school and away from the group of mean girls who made her middle school life hell. Finish this year and she'll be in the same school as Johnny and Morgan. 

Giggles reached her ears once more as she opened her locker, a bunch of notes fell out all with the same word written on them in huge black letters.

_ Freak _ .

Charlotte gathered them all up feeling a bunch of eyes on her. 

She had tried fighting back before, but all it did was get her in trouble and in more trouble with her parents. She never did bother telling them why or what had been going on, they were tough federal agents, this was just verbal bullying. Being weak wasn't something she ever was.

* * *

“Are you  _ sure _ you don't want me to go over there one day and shove them all down a flight of stairs?” 

Charlotte raised an eyebrow at Morgan who was spread across her bed, head slightly hanging off with a trashy magazine in hand. 

“While I'm sometimes for violence being the answer..I think that's a little much.” 

“You're better off embarrassing them.” Johnny said, without taking his eyes off his phone. “Give them some payback.”

Charlotte glared at his phone. He'd barely taken his eyes off the thing since coming over. She knew he was texting  _ Lola _ , his girlfriend. 

“I tried that, remember?” She couldn't help but snap. Johnny finally dropped his phone to look at her, a frown on his face.

“Right..uh sorry.”

Charlotte huffed and looked to Morgan who had a raised eyebrow as she watched them.

‘What was that?’ She mouthed.

Charlotte shook her head. Nothing. It was nothing.

She just didn't think Johnny should be texting Lola right now, he was here to see  _ her _  to try and help her with the problem. 

Okay so she didn't really want help, she just needed people to talk to. It was only words, she could take it. 

An hour before dinner, Morgan bounced out the door but not before giving Charlotte a hug.

“Just let me know if I need to be part of some devious plan.” She whispered in Charlotte's ear.

She laughed and hugged her tighter.

“Thanks but I'm good, really.”

“Cya babe!” She wiggled her fingers and was out the door.

Johnny shuffled his feet and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Look uh, I'm sorry for not paying attention.”

Charlotte shrugged. “Nothing new, you did it with Beth too.”

Johnny frowned. “I'm sorry, I just..I feel like a crappy boyfriend if I don't text back, I'm still learning to balance friend and boyfriend.”

“It's fine Johnny, honest. Though next time I'm tossing your phone out the window.”

He gaped at her. “That's a crime against electronics! This phone is my  _ baby _ !”

“I thought your laptop was your baby?”

“..That too.”

“Geek.”

“Nerd.”

Slowly they both smiled.

“So..see you this weekend?”

Charlotte nodded. “See ya this weekend.”

Johnny turned to the door, about to walk out but turned back to her.

Charlotte's eyes widened a little when his lips suddenly touched her cheek. 

He grinned at her when he pulled away. She could feel the heat in her cheeks and knew she was blushing.

“You'll get through the rest of this year, you're the strongest person I know.. _ Lottie _ .”

Charlotte groaned and shoved him. “Don't call me that!”

Johnny chuckled at her hatred for the name he had called her when they were younger, Charlotte was too much of a mouthful when you were little. 

“Out!” She huffed, pointing to the door.

* * *

She  _ hated _ this. 

She was supposed to be tough, strong, sarcastic and sassy! Yet Charlotte couldn't help the hurt she felt when hearing the hateful words those girls threw at her every school day.

Clenching her eyes shut to get rid of the tears, she hugged Leo to her chest. 

A knock at the door made her jump.

“Sweets, you okay in there?” 

She cleared her throat. “I'm fine Mom!”

“Really? Because you just ran up to your room the second you came home-”

Charlotte sighed. “You can come in..”

Her mom opened the door and she knew her mom right away knew she was upset by the worrying frown on her face. 

She came and sat across from her.

“What's going on sweets?” Ellie asked her daughter softly, moving a piece of hair out of her face.

“I..I don't want you to think that I'm weak.” Her voice broke. “You and Dad are federal agents for crying out loud-”

Ellie chuckled. “I think you're forgetting your Dad and I use to be your age too once upon a time.”

“A million years ago.” Charlotte grumbled under her breath, making Ellie give her leg a light smack.

“Watch it kid.” 

“It's...these girls at school, they're so mean.” She squeezed Leo tighter. “I never get hit or anything but..the words hurt.”

Ellie blinked back tears, right away pulling Charlotte in a hug. Charlotte sniffled and smiled a little as she hugged back.

“You know..” Ellie started to say when they pulled away. “I know how hurtful words can be..your Dad and I had to deal with bullying too, I mean your Dad thankfully joined his school sports teams when he went to high school which boosted his popularity, but me, I dealt with it until graduation. What I'm trying to say is..being hurt by words doesn't make you weak, the fact that you face it every day and continue on..that's what makes you strong. If you ever need to talk..we're here for you.”

Charlotte couldn't help but be surprised. Her parents were so  _ cool _ , she didn't think they ever had to deal with bullying, especially her dad, why would anyone bully him? 

“Thanks Mom..but um..does that mean I won't get in trouble if I..”

“You want to fight back.” Ellie chuckled. “Should have figured that one.”

“I'm  _ tired _ of it Mom. I dealt with it because I didn't want you to be disappointed or to get mad when I eventually got in trouble for fighting back-”

“Go for it.”

“What?”

Ellie smiled. “I never fought back unless you count your Uncles getting in the middle of it sometimes, but I don't want you to just sit back and take it, I know usually I tell you to be the bigger better person but..”

Charlotte jumped on her mom, giving her a big hug. “I love you Mom.”

“I love you too sweets.”

* * *

That night Ellie didn't turn the light off when Nick slid into bed, which right away gave him the hint that something was up. 

“Babe?”

“I talked to Charlotte..”

He felt a nerves twisting in his stomach. Charlotte had been a little off for a while, but Nick figured she would come to them when she was ready to talk. 

“Girls at school are bullying her.” Ellie swallowed. “I never wanted her to deal with that.”

Nick pulled her into his arms. “I know babe..I know.”

He knew Ellie's bullying still bothered her even years later, hell while his own bullying didn't bother him anymore, he could still feel the sting of their words like he was 13 again. He had been living in the US for years but he had still been struggling with his English a little and his accent never went away, which meant he became a target for bullies. Added onto that, at that time he was still scrawny which gave the bigger guys perfect ammo. 

“What're we going to do?” Nick asked softly, running his hand up and down her back.

“Talk to the principal, but that's it..there's nothing we can really do except be there for her.” Ellie looked sheepishly at him. “And I may have told her to fight back.”

Nick chuckled and kissed her. “That's my girl.”

It didn't take away the twisting feeling. He  _ hated _ not being able to protect his little girl (even if she wasn't so little anymore).

* * *

Charlotte watched from around the corner as the girls went to their lockers that were right next to each other. 

“Any second now..” She mumbled to herself, holding her phone out to record the whole thing.

The girls put in their combination, then went to open their lockers.

High pitched screams echoed through the hall, some students even covering their ears.

Charlotte snickered to herself.

All the girls were covered in red paint that had exploded from their lockers. 

She took another look to see the girls practically hyperventilating as they tried cleaning each other off only to make a bigger mess. 

Charlotte grinned and turned back down the hall exiting out of the video to text Morgan.

_ It worked! I'll show you the video later. _

_ AWESOME! Payback is a bitch. _


End file.
